Susan Polgar - A world champions guide to chess: step-by-step instructions for winning chess the Polgar way!

A World Champions Guide to ChessStep-by-Step Instructions for Winning Chess the Polgar Way!by Susan Polgar and Paul Truong 2015
Russell Enterprises, Inc.
Milford, CT USA A World Champions Guide to Chess
Step-by-Step Instructions for Winning Chess the Polgar Way!
by Susan Polgar and Paul Truong ISBN: 978-1-941270-32-5 (print) ISBN: 978-1-941270-33-2 (eBook) Copyright 2015 Susan Polgar and Paul Truong All Rights Reserved No part of this book may be used, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any manner or form whatsoever or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the express written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. Published by: Russell Enterprises, Inc. P.O. Box 3131 Milford, CT 06460 USA http://www.russell-enterprises.com Cover design by Janel Norris Editing and proofreading by Peter Kurzdorfer Photo of Susan Polgar by Timea Jaksa Printed in the United States of America IntroductionMy First Chess Experiences I discovered the game of chess by accident when I was not quite four years old. While exploring a closet in search of a doll, I found some funny-looking figurines that looked like horses, castles, and a queens crown. I asked my mother what they were, and she answered, They are chess pieces.

When your father comes home tonight, he will explain how to play with them. It was through my father that I started to learn the basics of chess. He made the game so fascinating that I became deeply interested. Later my two younger sisters, Judit and Sofia, also learned the game and became very strong players. While I was only four years old, I competed in the chess championship for girls under 11 years old in my home city of Budapest, Hungary. Although I was by far the youngest participant, I ended up winning the championship with a perfect 10-0 score! That was the beginning of my long and successful chess career.

During the past 40-plus years, I have been fortunate enough to accomplish quite a bit. I won my first world championship (girls under 16 years old) when I was 12. I became the highest ranked woman player in the world at the age of 15 and have been ranked among the top three women in the world for the past over 20 years. I participated in four Chess Olympiads (team championships), in 1988, 1990, 1994, and 2004, winning five gold medals, four silver medals, and one bronze medal in team and individual competition. My sisters and I ended the Soviet Unions total dominance in Womens Olympiads. In 1991, I became the first woman ever to earn the mens grandmaster title.

In 1992, I won my next two world championships (World Blitz and Rapid Championships). In 1996, I won my fourth world championship, becoming the first world champion (male or female) to win the Triple Crown in chess (World Blitz, Rapid, and Traditional World Championships). What this Book Will Teach You In this book I would like to share with you what I have learned and what has made me a successful player. This book includes not only methods that I have learned when I was growing up but also exclusive training methods that I have developed and used to train thousands of students over the years. An exclusive pattern recognition chapter will help you understand the foundations of dozens of patterns that will recur constantly in your games. Recognizing these patterns will let you see checkmates and other combinations three, four, five, and even six moves ahead.

In my lectures to parents, coaches, and young players across the country, I strongly recommend exactly what I have put into this book. I have come to realize that in the United States, too many players are not being taught properly. Too much emphasis is placed on the opening and not enough on other areas. I highly recommend that beginners and intermediate players work mostly with tactics and endgames and solve tactical exercises every day. Tactics and endgames are the foundations of chess. Opening study is important only at much higher levels such as expert, master, and beyond.

It is enough for beginner and intermediate players to understand only the basic principles of chess openings. All the puzzles in this book are my original compositions. I feel these are the most important ideas for players to know. You can find more advanced puzzles in my book Chess Tactics for Champions. How to Use this Book To get the most value from this book, record the time it takes you to solve each puzzle by making pencil notations in the margins or in a separate notebook. Also note whether or not youve been able to find the correct move.

When you have finished the entire book, go back and solve the puzzles again. Then compare the times and results. You should be faster and more accurate the second time. Repeat the same procedure a third time and see your solving time improve. My father used to say: Repetition makes a master. Repetition makes you a better chess player.

And he was right. Solving thousands of puzzles really helped me become the player that I am today. The point is not to memorize the actual positions but to remember the ideas, to recognize the patterns. Chess is largely a matter of pattern recognition. The more patterns you know, the better player you will be. It is said that an average grandmaster has a mental library of 20,000 patterns, which includes tactical, strategic, and endgame patterns.

The main aim of this book is to help you build your own library of ideas. The Essentials of ChessTutorialITHE BOARD AND PIECESThe Chessboard Chess is fun and cool game. But before you can start playing you must know how to set up the board and pieces. It is quite simple so dont worry. Lets go through it step-by-step. There are 64 squares on the chessboard.

There are eight squares horizontally (from side to side) and eight squares vertically (from top to bottom). The squares are laid out in alternating dark and light colors, as shown. In order to keep track of what happens on the board, we use the coordinate (algebraic) system of recording moves and positions. With this system we assign a letter and number to each square. This lets you record a game by noting the location of each piece after every move.

• The columns of vertical squares are called files and are designated by the letters a, b, c, d, e, f, g, and h.
• The rows of horizontal squares are called ranks and are designated by the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8.

When referring to the coordinates, remember that the letter always goes before the number.

• The columns of vertical squares are called files and are designated by the letters a, b, c, d, e, f, g, and h.
• The rows of horizontal squares are called ranks and are designated by the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8.

When referring to the coordinates, remember that the letter always goes before the number.

For example, the square below is called d4, not 4d.

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